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Title: Effects of oxygen enrichment and fuel emulsification on diesel engine performance and emissions

Conference ·
OSTI ID:5482924
; ; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Argonne National Lab., IL (United States)
  2. Autoresearch Labs., Inc., Chicago, IL (United States)

Tests on a single-cylinder, direct-injection diesel engine coupled to an oxygen-enriching membrane system were performed. In the effects of injection timing were investigated. An oxygen-enriching membrane was used to supply combustion air. Use of bottled oxygen in any real diesel engine application would be a safety hazard, so bottled oxygen is unlikely to be used in commercial engine applications. For this reason, it is important to demonstrate an engine system with an on-line oxygen-enriching device. Tests were conducted with {number sign}2 and {number sign}4 diesel fuels. The data indicated that NO{sub x} emissions increase when the oxygen level is increased from 21 to 27%, but retarding the injection timing by 11 degrees crank angle significantly reduced the NO{sub x} emissions. The effect on NO{sub x} reduction of retarding the injection timing is greater at higher oxygen levels. The water emulsification of the fuels also reduced NO{sub x} emissions significantly. It was shown that oxygen-enriched combustion air reduced particulate emissions, smoke, and ignition delay. The effect on ignition delay resulted in a favorable NO{sub x} vs. fuel consumption trade-off when the injection timing changed. The collective data lead to the conclusion that an optimum set of the major operating variables, including (1) oxygen level in the combustion air, (2) water level in the fuel, and (3) injection timing, could lead to a diesel engine system that has (A) significantly lower particulates, smoke, and NO{sub x} emissions, without loss of efficiency; (B) the ability to use lower-cost heavy liquid fuels; and (C) the potential for increasing the power output by as much as 50% with only an increase of 15% in peak cylinder pressure.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab., IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
W-31109-ENG-38
OSTI ID:
5482924
Report Number(s):
ANL/CP-73728; CONF-910927-1; ON: DE91016520
Resource Relation:
Conference: American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) international combustion engine technical conference, Muskegon, MI (United States), 30 Sep - 2 Oct 1991
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English